When I very first started blogging, it was because I wanted a community to be part of, I wanted to share my writing and I wanted to create something I was proud of. More than two years on and I have definitely achieved all of these things.
I see my blogging as going through three stages.
Stage 1
My first attempt through WordPress.com, a brilliant platform in the right hands. My hands were kind of half way there, I think I managed to put together a blog that wasn’t too terrible. It had branding and colour, it had a rough organisational structure and it had half decent content, all be it not very regular. But it was generic, it wasn’t unique and I felt like I couldn’t customise it. (trying to find a screenshot of it, but failing)
Leading us on to…
Stage 2
The Wix stage. I wanted a website that I could completely customise and make exactly as I wanted it. No coding, just good old fashioned click and drag. I’d used Wix before so I thought it was a good choice to go for. And I stuck with it, for around a year, until it kept glitching and became too much hassle than it was worth. I wrote about why I left the platform here.
Stage 3
Which took me to stage 3, my current blog. Hosted with a fantastic company called Lyrical Host, this blog is exactly what I wanted. Through WordPress.org I’m able to do a lot more, I understand how to do it and I have a theme that works perfectly for me. This is the best my blog has ever been and it is receiving more views than ever.
What did I learn over these three stages though? I think by the final stage I had come to the realisation that to get my blog exactly as I wanted it, I would have to invest some money into it. I paid Lyrical Host around £100 to convert my blog from Wix to WordPress and for a year of hosting and my theme was around £50. This was not overly expensive in the grand scheme of things, so it was a cost I was happy to pay. The result is that I have a blog to be proud of, one that I want to share and grow and write for.
Since starting my blog, my social channels have only grown and I love being part of an active and positive community online. A lot of people say the internet is bad for you, but I think that depends what part of it you surround yourself in. I know I can put down my phone/laptop whenever I want to, I am not addicted, but it is nice to know I have a group of friends online when I need them.
The more I developed my blog, the more I grew as a blogger. My writing style has changed, the themes I talk about have developed and my enjoyment has only grown. I now take my blog as seriously as a job, in the hope that one day it could be one. I write about topics close to my heart and I try to take a unique stance in my posts. Having a routine of posting twice a week helps to keep me on track, that’s also a big change. I used to post spontaneously with no guide, but now I know what I’m posting and when.
It’s funny looking back on the designs I used to use and how I started off. I cringe at some of the photos I would post, but actually they all contributed to me growing as a content creator and building my confidence. I wouldn’t have got where I am without starting at the bottom.
To share the love, comment with your blog link and a little bit about you down below.
Thanks for sharing your experience! I’ve had other blogs in the past under pseudonyms and this will be my first attempt in publicly owning my creativity and my space as a writer. I tried using Blogger and then landed on Squarespace and I agree, investing in the site helped me get what I was looking for. I love your blog and this was encouraging to read.
Thank you so much, I wish you the best of luck with your blog!
Oh I’ve not actually heard of Lyrical Host, I will have to check them out! I am currently using blogger just because I find it the easiest, but I know it’s definitely not the best platform out there and there is definitely parts of my blog I’m very unhappy with!
They’re a fantastic service and host, if you’re thinking of moving over then I’d highly advise them!
I’ve never heard of Lyrical Host before! Next year sometime I want to go self-hosted so I will check them out x
– Charlotte / myownblogofthoughts.blogspot.com
I’ve never heard of Lyrical Host before. I use Blue Host for my blog and they’ve been pretty great so far. The journey of a blogger is always the hardest thing, but the most rewarding when you can look back and see your growth. I’m currently in the struggle of debating whether to invest more into my blog to make it a potential place for supplemental income or just keeping it a little side gig. I aim to be a novelist one day, but admittedly fear I wouldn’t have as much time to invest in my blog once I have deadlines and other projects weighing on me. It makes me fear that I’d be putting so much time and work into something that would be temporary and I could be using that time and energy for other things, even though I love my blog and I want to grow it. Ah, it’s such a hard rock to be stuck with.
Thank you for sharing your journey with us and I’m glad you’ve kept trucking along. You have such a beautiful blog and are such an insightful blogger. I love reading your posts. Thank you.
-Avhlee / https://teacupsandtornpages.com/
Thank you so much for your comment. It is difficult to balance full time life with blogging, I try and write whenever I can so I have the option to schedule my posts, but it doesn’t always work out like that.
I’m trying to get to a point where I can look at self hosting too, the cost is definitely what is putting me off. I haven’t heard of lyricalhost before but i’ll def keep them in mind! 🙂 i really enjoyed this post and reading about your different changes.
Oh you should definitely do it Lauren! I’m so pleased with my blog now and I don’t think the cost was too much considering what I received for it.